The present invention relates in general to computer systems, and, more particularly, to a graphical interface, method, and system for the provision of diagnostic services in a computer system.
With the proliferation of home and business computers, the provision of timely and efficient diagnostic, support, and maintenance services to computer users has become a critical issue for manufacturers and sellers of computer systems. It is not uncommon for computer users, especially new users of computer systems, or experienced users attempting to add or reconfigure existing computer systems, to experience difficulties with their computer systems. It is not uncommon for computer systems to freeze or hang. In other cases, a peripheral of the computer system, such as a hard drive, disk drive, or printer, may not function properly. In other cases, the computer system may not recognize the peripheral. The solution to these sorts of problems may range from simply turning on power to the affected peripheral, reconnecting the affected peripheral, reconfiguring the computer system hardware or software, or installing a necessary software patch for the affected peripheral.
To diagnose and correct a computer system problem, computer users typically have had to consult user""s manuals that were included with the purchase of the computer system or peripheral. These manuals typically include troubleshooting tables or guides that attempt to diagnose a user""s problem on the basis of symptoms recognized by the user. The effectiveness of the user""s manual in assisting the users in identifying and correcting the problems encountered depends in large part on the skill of the computer user and the clarity and completeness of the user""s manual. An inexperienced computer user may have difficulty in locating the source of the problem and in following the often confusing instructions in the user""s manual. Moreover, user""s manuals are often deficient in that they do not address every difficulty encountered by the user.
As an alternative or in addition to consulting a user""s manual, a user experiencing difficulty with a computer system may consult diagnostic and support software stored locally on the computer system. The effectiveness of locally stored diagnostic software is limited in that the software programs generally display text files that have information similar to that found in user""s manuals. As a result, computer users attempting to diagnose computer system problems through locally stored software programs face limitations similar to those faced by users attempting to diagnose computer system problems through a user""s manual.
As another alternative, personal computer users may have access to a computer support or help line. A computer support or help line requires that the user contact a computer support specialist at a central site. The computer support specialist will listen to the user""s symptoms and attempt to diagnose the problem. This process often involves the computer support specialist stepping the user through a series of diagnostic tests. If appropriate, the computer support specialist may provide the user with instructions or tips for correcting the problem. The effectiveness of interpersonal diagnostic and support services of this sort depends in large part on the skill of the computer user being assisted. Regardless of the skill and knowledge of the computer support specialist, the computer user will nevertheless have to describe correctly the problem being experienced, assist the computer support specialist in diagnosing the problem, and perform the fix or correction suggested by the computer support specialist.
Another drawback of computer support lines is that they are often overused. Computer users that are experiencing trivial or easily correctable problems will contact a computer specialist to resolve the problem. Often the problems are relatively simple and are sometimes corrected by simply applying power to the computer or affected peripheral. Calls regarding such easily correctable problems to the computer support help line unnecessarily clog the phone lines with problems that could be corrected locally.
In view of the difficulties of known diagnosis and support systems for computer users, a need has arisen for a system that provides a method and system for providing diagnostic services to computer users that involves the use of a clickable, graphical representation of a computer system. When a user seeks diagnostic and support services from the computer systems, the method and system of the present invention displays for the user a graphical representation of a computer system. The user may click a component of the computer system that is represented by a graphical component of the graphical representation of the computer system. Once the user identifies the component of the computer system that is experiencing problems, the method and system of the present inventions performs diagnostic services on the clicked component. The diagnostic services may include an analysis of the software driver of the clicked component and the diagnostic testing of the clicked component. The diagnostic program of the present invention may also access online support services to permit the user to access the most recent update of the software driver for the clicked component or to permit the user to communicate with a diagnostic support specialist, who may direct the downloading of diagnostic tools or the execution of diagnostic tools from a location remote from the computer system.